June, my mom, is a woman ahead of her time. When suburban housewives were full-time homemakers wearing sundresses and pearls, June sported Levis and boots. At the ripe young age of 40, she went back to school and got her GED, continuing on to college to earn her nursing degree. She didn’t stop there; she furthered her unquenchable thirst for knowledge and got her PHD in Social Work and Epistemology, a subject you will definitely need to Google if you want to know what it is. She was a scholastic gymnast, studying and carting us to rounds of sporting events, play-dates and school. We had an hour commute; she was convinced private schools provided the best education AND she paid for it herself. Oh yeah, she worked for my father too.

My brilliant mother’s book, Beyond Revolutions, is so beyond my intellect I still have a hard time reading, much less grasping the contents. It earned praises from the renowned Dr. Albert Ellis. She branched out to more creative writing and as she watched me navigate my life, she urged me to write. In the late 90’s, when mom asked me to go with her to “The Jackson Hole Writers’ Conference,” I laughed and said, “I’m not a writer!” She just smiled, like the Mona Lisa.

How do moms know these things? Really!!???

Thank you mom – for being ‘you’ when being ‘you’ was not in vogue. You are a fearless and inspiring force that will spur me to follow my heart, learn, grow and love forever.

And I cannot celebrate Mothers’ Day without mentioning my mother-in-law, Vestal – her name sort of speaks for itself. She’s an angel who raised nine – yep – nine – wonderful children with grace and love. Talk about inspiring! Thank you for welcoming me into your family.